WHAT’S UP DOC? In honor of “D,” one of my heroes

Tuesday

Aug 28, 2018 at 12:54 PMAug 31, 2018 at 9:17 AM

Today’s column is to honor one of my heroes, someone who has inspired me with her bravery, compassion and character: “D”.

Sept. 11, 2001 dawned as a typical late-summer day, with warm temperatures and blue-bird skies. People across the country were going about their lives, sending their kids off to school, getting ready for work, doing errands. But it was no ordinary day, and the events that occurred that morning would forever redirect our way of thinking. Now, nearly 17 years later, many Americans have only lingering memories of that fateful day, but for others their lives were irrevocably changed, whether because of the loss of loved ones that day or due to issues that have arisen since then.

D and her family are among those people. As a paramedic, and later as a physician’s assistant (PA), D was dedicated to disaster response and public service for over two decades. With over 10 years working in EMS and 15 years as a physician’s assistant, she devoted her life to helping others in times of crisis. On the morning of Sept. 11, as she prepared for her PA graduation ceremony later that day, the unthinkable was unfolding, and its aftermath would alter the trajectory of her life forever. A longtime member of the MA-1 DMAT (my disaster team, although as 9/11 was a motivation for me to join the team I was not yet a member), D was about to head right into the epicenter of the attack.

MA-1 DMAT was activated on the morning of Sept. 11 as the second plane hit the second tower. Within a few hours members of the team had mobilized and said goodbye to their families and their employers, loaded their gear, and were on the road in rented vehicles, en route to New York City. The uncertainty of what they were headed into weighed heavily on their minds. When they left Massachusetts their mission was to treat the survivors of the attack, but when they arrived at Ground Zero they realized there were none for them to treat. The team quickly shifted gears and set up medical stations on the corners of the pile to treat those responders who were, for every hour of every day, desperately searching for life, and later the remains of life.

For the first two weeks after the attack, MA-1 DMAT provided direct patient care to the responders - firefighters and law enforcement - treating issues from respiratory compromise, lacerations and burns to heart attacks, impalements, eye irritations and dehydration. During this time everyone there breathed in the smoke, fumes and ash. But as the patient load never wavered, neither did MA-1.

In 2015, D was diagnosed with gastric cancer; multiple other WTC responders have also developed illnesses, including several different types of cancers, felt to be related to their exposure during their deployment. Considering her time spent at Ground Zero and the exposure to the carcinogens, ash, smoke and fumes, D applied for the World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program, a program established in 2011 to provide healthcare to 9/11 responders and survivors, and in May 2016 she received approval.

For nearly three years D battled her cancer, fighting through chemotherapy, radiation, and immunotherapy, as well as multiple surgeries and setbacks. Through it all, she remained steadfast in her devotion to her family, her teammates, friends, and her passion for public service. On Aug. 23, 2018, at age 48 and just a few weeks shy of the 17th anniversary of 9/11, D died from her cancer. Her husband and four young children, ages 5, 8, 10 and 11, have had to say their final goodbyes.

D’s MA-1 teammates will never be able to fill the void she has left behind, and we will never forget her. With strong voices we will carry on her legacy and her wish to get the word out to everyone who was at Ground Zero to register for the WTC Health Program and September 11th Victim Compensation Fund.

Despite its availability, not all WTC responders who qualify have applied or registered for the Victim Compensation Fund, which provides financial compensation to those physically injured or made ill. Though the WTC Health Program is funded long-term, the deadline to register for the Victim Compensation Fund is Dec. 18, 2020. It was D’s wish that everyone who responded to 9/11 get registered as soon as possible; she wanted to make sure that her fellow responders from across the country are made aware of these benefits and protected should they become ill in the future. Even as her own cancer progressed and subsequently took her life, true to the person she always was, D was still acting to help others.

I want to send a special thanks to Pam Joplin, one of my MA-1 team members, who helped write today’s column.

Jeff Hersh, Ph.D., M.D., can be reached at DrHersh@juno.com

EDITOR'S NOTE: This column has been updated to correct the name of the fund that has a deadline to apply.